The Past, the Present, and the Future
by NB1224
Summary: Sometimes, people have to look back at their past days, and think about how they ended up where they are now. But sometimes, this leads to uncovering secrets you've long kept buried. Join the residents of the Scarlet Devil Mansion as they recall their orgin stories, and face their past. Rated T for mild violence, language and sexual themes occasional strong violence and language.
1. Chapter 1

The Past, the Present, and the Future

Most things have a start, as we all know. Many people look back at their past as the time they were young, had fun, and enjoyed life to the fullest. Those people are eager to see the future, as nobody knows what it may hold, good or bad. For some people, however, the idea of the future is a good subject of comedy, realizing the present is the future for them. And more than that, the past is a distant memory, one that no innocent, living being should have to endure.

 _Gensokyo_ , a world where mystical creatures dwell, and the supernatural reigns. A world of splendor, and beauty, depending on where you are, and who you ask, that is. Humans rarely visit this realm, as they either are unable to enter, or find it, or simply due to the fact they'd most definitely be killed. The Youkai that inhabit the realm of _Gensokyo_ all seem to have a common distaste for humanity, more so than each other. Amongst the mountains, forest and lakes, there, in the center of a large, open valley, sat a Manor. More spectacular than any on Earth, that wasn't built to replicate it. This place was the Scarlet Devil Mansion, where the Scarlet family, along with several servants and attendants dwelled. However, most people never saw the Mistress of the house, or her younger sister, as they rarely came out during the day.

Because the Scarlet family are vampires.

Remilia Scarlet, the Mistress of the manor, was on the shaded balcony, sipping her fill of tea. Tea that, naturally, was mixed with a certain amount of blood from past failed intruders, that didn't escape successfully, or that she acquired from sapping it from humans who dared challenge her, or step foot in her manor. She sipped the tea elegantly, and looked out over the lake the Manor was built at the edge of. She had been living there for the past 250 years, following her retreat to the world of Gensokyo when she was 245 years old. Still young, for a vampire, that is.

"Sakuya" she said, stoically. The tall woman in a maid-like outfit standing near the door stepped forwards. She had silvery-white hair, piercing blue eyes, and a slender, elegant physique, which was further emphasized by her proper and refined posture and mannerisms. When she spoke, her voice was calm, and soothing, unless she was engaged in combat, of course. Her navy-blue dress with white apron and headdress were complemented with a pair of white gloves, which she wore when serving tea and coffee, and a golden chain, leading to a pocket watch, which she always had with her.

"Yes, Mistress?" Sakuya responded, looking as calm as ever. Remilia turned to her.

"The tea is very good, Sakuya. Then again, I think it gets better every day, somehow." Sakuya looked to the horizon to avoid the light blush coming to her face.

"Thank you, M'lady. I know how you like your tea prepared, so I make sure to make it right every time."

"Well, you're doing s _omething_ different every time. Because it keeps getting better."

"I only make it the way you prefer it. I do not change anything."

"This is why I keep you around, Sakuya. Among several other things."

Sakuya let a tiny smile come to her face.

"Thank you, Mistress." Sakuya and Remilia both sat in silence for a moment, before Sakuya broke the silence. "I should check on the library. I think a certain thief has returned…" Remilia nodded, sipping her tea.

"Make sure you come back quickly, Sakuya. I'd get lonely otherwise." Sakuya nodded, and headed off to the library.

* * *

The Mansion's library was massive, and expansive. The shelves stood almost 15 feet tall, and the books were neatly sorted by author, and hen by title, and genre. In the middle was a small lounge, with a small table and a few chairs. When Sakuya entered, the tall double doors opened with a creak, letting the light behind Sakuya spill into the dark library, with only a single lamp providing any extra light. Sakuya made her way to the lounge, where she saw a young-looking girl, with deep purple hair, and a lilac nightgown, that had a pink silk robe over it, with slippers, and a cap, similar to Remilia's, though this girl's bore a little gold crescent shape on it. Approaching her, Sakuya couldn't tell whether she was asleep, or way too absorbed in her reading, as her head was hung low, over a large book. When Sakuya's heels clicked against the wooden floor, the girl looked up at Sakuya, her violet eyes had several dark rings beneath them. This girl was Patchouli Knowledge, the unmoving librarian of the Scarlet Devil Mansion. Her title was mostly a joke made by Remilia, but it wasn't completely false. Patchouli has a plethora of ailments and chronic illnesses, that made moving around a challenge for her. Despite these, she was actually a very skilled magician, capable of casting the elements in her spells. If they didn't cause her to collapse from the effort, that is. Sakuya giggled at Patchouli's messy, frayed hair as she drowsily looked at Sakuya.

"You really should start sleeping in your bed, Patchouli. We even gave you a room across the hall, so it wasn't far." The maid was the first to speak, with a kind smile on her face. Patchouli sipped her now lukewarm coffee, and spoke, her voice rough, and monotone.

"Sleeping doesn't interest me. Besides, Marisa would take advantage of my sleeping." She replied, looking back on her book.

"She already comes in when you take your naps, Patchouli. Koakuma has a rough job fending her off, you know." Sakuya replied, with a slight blunt tone in her voice. Patchouli rolled her eyes, and turned the page in her book. Sakuya took her coffee mug, and inspected it. "Should I make some more?" she asked politely.

"No, I'll be fine. Besides, I was going to try and sleep once I finished this chapter anyways." Patchouli replied, eyes still glued to the page. Sakuya set the mug down, before letting out a small sigh. Some silence reigned for a few awkward moments, before Patchouli let out a heavier sigh, and placed a bookmark on the page, and gently closed her massive text. "Sakuya."

"Yes?"

"How do you do it?"

"Hmm?"

"How can you be so… patient, and accepting of everything. We ask so much of you, and you do, exactly that. I feel bad for you, Sakuya. I… I wish I didn't have to ask you for anything. If my asthma wasn't so bad, I'd make my own coffee, get my own books from the shelves, but…"

Sakuya cut her off.

"It's alright, Patche. I don't mind it one bit. In fact…" Patchouli eyed Sakuya oddly, 'Patche' was Remilia and Marisa's pet name for Patchouli, so hearing Sakuya of all people say it was definitely an odd thing indeed. Before Patchouli could speak anything, Sakuya gave her a small hug, and looked her in the eye, going down to one knee so she was at eye level with Patchouli. "I'm more than willing to help you out, Patchouli. I help Mistress Remilia out because she's the Mistress of this manor, and I owe her my everything, and everyone else because it's my job. But I help you, because I know how delicate you are, Patchouli. And I don't want anything bad to befall you." She spoke, her stoic tone not once faltering, yet Patchouli could feel a hint of compassion and earnesty in Sakuya's words. She blushed a small but.

"Sakuya…" Patchouli embraced the Head Maid, before Sakuya broke the embrace.

"I should return to the Mistress." She spoke, standing up. "Take care, Patchouli." She stood up and left the library, closing the doors behind her.

* * *

When Sakuya returned to the balcony, Remilia had just finished her teacup, and looked over to Sakuya as she approached.

"How was Patche?" Remilia asked.

"She is still Patchouli. Nothing really different about her." Sakuya responded, pouring Remilia another cup of tea, as they watched the sunset. Remilia sipped her tea, before swirling it around in her cup a bit, then dropped another sugar cube into the mixture.

"Sakuya."

"Yes?"

"Do you remember?"

"Remember what?"

"That day… long ago."

"There were many days from long ago, M'lady. Many special ones."

"I was thinking of the most special of them all, Sakuya."

"And what day was that, Mistress?"

"The day I found you."


	2. Chapter 2

**The Past, the Present, and the Future**

 **Chapter 2:**

 **The Maid and the Pocket Watch of Blood**

* * *

 **A/N: This chapter is pretty long, but I hope it's still enjoyable!**

* * *

Sakuya stood in silence, for a moment or two, before smiling, and speaking.

"Yes… I remember the day. Rather, I remember the night, if my memory serves me correctly." Sakuya was right, Remilia hadn't seen her during the day back then, only at night did the two meet. Remilia giggled, and sipped her tea.

"Yes, you're correct. How silly of me." They both reminisced on that night, long ago, about 180 years ago, so, song for a human, but a short while for a vampire like Remilia. "How soon we forget… It was in… Paris, yes? Or was it London? I forget." Remilia spoke, listing off cities where she would visit.

"Paris. Well, a small town near the city." She replied. "If I recall, it's now a part of the city, since it grew quite a bit since then."

"Really? Huh. Not like either of us miss that place."

"Not at all." The horrid memories Sakuya had, the horrors she was forced to endure… These were the rumored secrets Sakuya never told anyone. Even Remilia.

The year was 1827, in a small village near Paris, France. The full moon illuminated the lone, small figure walking down a small gravel path, moving past the poorly built houses and other buildings, towards the nearby woods, where nobody lived, despite there being a sizable house there, but the legends that it was cursed and haunted kept the townsfolk far from the home. Nevertheless, the small figure shifted closer to the accursed place, the black, glossy robe and hood concealing the identity of the figure. It moved to the double doors of the rundown half-manor, and pulled on the metal hinge to knock on the door, the sounds of the banging echoing through the halls. Remilia, now realizing she hadn't woken up the humans nearby, her wings, which were disguised as a cloak, folded back to their normal place, as she waited, impatiently. Finally, the doors swung open, as a young girl, no older than about 15, greeted her.

"Welcome…" She spoke with a raspy, croaking voice, her pale complexion almost scared Remilia. How close to death was she? She needed to be close, given her shaky hands and body. "Do you have an… appointment with… the lord of this place?" It took her 6 seconds to speak a sentence that should take about 2 to speak. She took in massive breaths in the middle of the sentence, and seemed winded just talking.

"Yes. I will see him immediately." Remilia internally cringed. She questioned her decision to go there in the first place, let alone see the sick madman inside. Nonetheless, she pressed on, and entered the ruins. Inside the halls, which were filled with dust and cobwebs, however, turning a corner, she found spotless halls, with exquisite decorations within them. Remilia entered the double doors at the end of the hall, a faint light emanating from them. She hesitated upon turning the knob, but there was no going back. Not now.

"Ahh… Remilia Scarlet, what a pleasant surprise!" The man sitting at the other end of the room spoke in a very stereotypical Vampire accent (Basically a cartoon Dracula voice, where a W is spoken like a V, and so on), which was expected of him. He was, after all, one of the last living Transylvanians in the world, probably the only one that wasn't being hunted still.

"Drad… let's just get this over with" Remilia spoke coolly, which took some effort, given her irritation with the former count.

"It's _Count Dradimir_ to you, Scarlet." He replied.

"Sorry, _Mr. Dradimir_." Remilia chuckled. While he still went as 'Count' it wasn't really his title anymore, as he, and the other Transylvanian Lords were some time ago, when Remilia was still just a baby. She recalled her father and Drad never getting along. At all.

"So, you're here to _Mock_ me? Or do you have business with my library?" Drad wasn't amused by Remilia's comment on his status, but he kept his composure quite well. "Tell me, what would _I_ have in my shelves that _You_ possibly don't?"

"A book. _A Study on the Effects of Pain-Caused Insanity_. My librarian says we don't have that one." Remilia recalled the book's title. Dradimir seemed to think on the subject, before sighing.

"I shall have my servant check in with the bookkeeper. See if we have it. _Servituer!_ " He barked something in French at the door next to his makeshift throne. Emerging a few seconds later was a young girl, 22 or so, whose silvery-white hair and slender physique instantly caught Remilia's eye. She was, in a single word, beautiful. Her eyes were bluer than the ocean, her gaze cool as a sea-breeze. Despite this obvious beauty, her torn-up French maid outfit, and grimy patches on her face made Remilia ask herself how much pain this girl was in as well. She approached Dradimir, and bowed.

"Yes, master?"

"Go to the library, and ask the bookkeeper if we have the book _A Study on the Effects of Pain-Caused Insanity_. Our esteemed guest wishes to borrow it." Dradimir spoke with no polite tone towards this girl, which angered Remilia to no end. Why does he have to disrespect everyone who serves him? Regardless, the maid-girl bowed.

"As you with, my Lord." She bowed again, and rushed off to the Library. Dradimir looked back to Remilia.

"Perhaps, refreshments should be in order?" he asked her, snapping his fingers, the young girl whom had greeted Remilia at the door earlier stepped up to Dradimir. Remilia did her best to keep her composure.

"Tea would be great, Drad. Black tea, preferably." She said, her voice shaking a small bit. She knew what Dradimir was about to do, and the thought wasn't a pleasant one. She looked down, and closed her eyes, repeating a mantra she had been saying the entire way to France, ' _This is for Flan's sake, this is for Flan's sake this is for Flan's sake_ ' as Dradimir laughed, before extending his fangs, and biting into the girl's neck, her choked sounds of pain made Remilia's gut wrench, though her pleading eyes told Remilia that this was going to be the moment her pain ceased. Dradimir, with a final sucking noise, pulled his fangs out, the wound not bleeding anymore, as the girl's eyes rolled up, and she fell to the ground, dead. Remila made sure she didn't show her holding back the urge to vomit. Dradimir chuckled, before speaking.

"She was… _Exquisite_ , you know, Rema." Remilia glared at him. 'Rema' was a pet name Dradimir gave her when she was young, as an insult to her father. Before she could open her mouth, the servant girl returned, carrying the book Remilia needed.

"I acquired the book, my Lord." She said. Dradimir pointed to Remilia, and the woman handed er the book. Remilia's sense of smell caught her blood. It was… intoxicating to her. Remilia had to steel herself to avoid draining the woman in front of her, instead nodding to her in thanks.

"Well then, Dradimir, I shall be taking my leave. I'll return this book to you tomorrow, let's say?" Remilia spoke, eager to get the Hell out of there.

"Of course. Same time as tonight?" He responded.

"Sure. Give or take a little while." Remilia responded.

"It's settled, then. See you later~" He said. Remilia rushed out the door, and back onto the street, almost forgetting to disguise herself with her wing cloak.

The book was dull and slow, as Remilia had predicted. But, the information was useful. Flandre, her younger sister, was going through a harsh time in her life. All she wanted to do was destroy things, forcing Remilia to keep her locked in her room. However, Remilia couldn't study the entire book in one sitting, so she'd need to keep it. Her mind drifted to the woman Dradimir had, her beauty, her scent, and the way she was treated by Dradimir. It disgusted Remilia. _"I don't care if she's a human. I don't care if she's a damn HUNTER. She doesn't need to suffer like that. Drad'll pay. Dearly. Then I'll take this book, and the girl._ " She thought to herself, and decided to rest for the day, she'd need her strength for the next meeting with Dradimir.

When Remilia returned, the woman whom Remilia had planned on taking with her was the one at the door. She gave a slight curtsey.

"Welcome, Madame Scarlet." Remilia nodded back, and then tilted her head at the girl. And noticed something odd. She wasn't marked on the neck. Normally, Dradimir, and most other vampires leave two pinprick marks on their victim's necks. This woman didn't seem to have any present.

"You're unmarked. I'm surprised Drad hasn't sucked you dry yet." She said, the woman sighed. She rolled up her sleeve, and there, on her wrist, were two pinprick scars. The woman sighed again.

"… he made me unable to age, yet able to resist. He… he wants to break me. Make me live a half-life… all because of what I wanted to do…" She stopped herself, and beckoned Remilia inside. Remilia placed a hand on the woman's side, since she was too short to reach the woman's shoulder.

"Don't worry… you… you won't be in pain any more after tonight." Remilia said, before continuing into the lair of her new enemy.

"Scarlet! What a pleasure to see you again." Dradimir said cheerfully, before noticing that Remilia was holding her weapon, rather than the book. "Where's the book?" he asked, Remilia took a battle stance.

"You, are a sick, twisted being. That woman doesn't deserve this shit treatment you're giving her!" Remilia hissed. Dradimir sighed, before tossing a small sack at Remilia. She stared, confused. Dradimir beckoned her.

"Open it. Then you will see who you are… defending so foolishly." Remilia cautiously opened the sack, and inspected the contents. Inside were a large number of knives, but upon closer inspection, they were not steel. They were silver blades. Silver, a vampire's bane, something only the most skilled of vampire hunters utilized. And if this woman had this many silver daggers… shit, she had to have been good. Dradimir let out a low chuckle. "You see? I'm punishing this cretin for her crimes. You should be thankful, Scarlet Devil." Dradimir stood up, and walked towards Remilia, his blood red eyes locked with hers. "Obviously I am dealing with a fool here, but alas, your compassion is blinding your power. Making you _weak_. Not that it matters, anyways. I'll forgive your mistake, because I'm generous." Remilia gritted her teeth, her fangs out, and wings extended, ready for an intense fight. Dradimir laughed, before he walked back to his seat, and waited for Remilia's next move.

"You've killed so many people. I get that we need to survive, but there's other ways of going about it, Drad. What the hell did any of these people do to you?" Remilia spat.

"They were…" Dradimir began, before extending his own wings, his face becoming more bat-like, and monstrous in shape, his laughing became deep, and slow, and his fangs easily tripled in length. Remilia steeled herself, and readied a spell card, a trick she learned back in Gensokyo. Dradimir leapt up into the air, as the woman, who was evidently a hunter, or a former one, came into the room. At first, she was scared, seeing Dradimir's beast-like appearance, but then she felt something hit her ankle, and looked down. She gasped at what she saw. It was her knives.

She picked a few up, holding them by the blade, and took a stance next to Remilia, as Dradimir cackled again. He spoke once more, his voice demonic in pitch and tone.

"They were… _disgusting_." Dradimir charged at Remilia, as she unleashed a flurry of projectiles at Dradimir, his half-bat form was able to avoid the attack, but before he could land a hit, he was stopped when a silver-bladed knife flew past him, forcing him to cut off his attack. Remilia then used the opportunity to attack him again, this time with a rain of needled that followed him around, the woman throwing knives to throw off Dradimir's evasion path. The three fought mercilessly, Dradimir going after the woman or Remilia, whichever one was more open to assault, and the two quickly shut him down. Eventually, the woman ran out of knives to throw, and Dradimir noticed, charging at her with incredible speed. She tried to dodge, but he was too quick, and lashed at her, slashing her torso and sending her flying out the nearby window, leaving just him and Remilia. But she was already hurling bullets at him, and seeing her ally be harmed enraged Remilia, and she let out a scream, and charged at Dradimir, taking the both of them out the window as well, into the back garden of the ruined manor. They fought and fought, and for a while, it seemed that neither of them was gaining the upper hand, until Remilia ended up slipping up an attack, because something was glistening out the corner of her eye, and distracted her. Dradimir slammed into Remilia, causing her to be hurled to the ground, colliding with solid earth.

Remilia was on her hands and knees, trying to stand up after all the pain she had endured. Dradimir approached her, and let out a dark chuckle.

"This… this is where you die, Scarlet Devil-" Before he could finish, he felt a sharp pain in his chest, and looked down. A knife, with a silver blade, was piercing his heart, causing his body to slowly heat up, as he let out agonized cries of pain, and dissolved to dust, the knife falling to the dirt below. Remilia gaped at what had just happened, before a choked cough broke her trance, and she looked behind her. The woman, her silver hair mottled with crimson splotches, and her eyes faded slightly, a piece of jagged wood stuck in her chest. Remilia quickly rushed over to her, and removed the plank, the woman's breath becoming more stable, and her choking groans became words.

"T-Thank you… for… helping me… break free." She began. Remilia looked her in the eyes. The woman coughed again. "It seems… this is the end for me… it was… an honor… fighting with you…" Remilia shook her head.

"What's your name?" she asked, sitting the woman up. Healing magic wasn't gong to be enough, Remilia knew what she was going to have to do to save this woman.

"What?"

"Your name. What is it?"

"I… I don't know… the Count erased a lot of my memory, my name included…" Remilia sighed, and took a dagger in her hand, and began carving something into the dirt. The woman looked at her drawing, and noticed it was a symbol, but she couldn't tell what it was. Remilia smiled.

"These flowers… they're beautiful, aren't they?"

"Indeed…"

"So… on this flowering night…" Remilia pointed to the sketch she made. "I shall give you a proper name." The woman nodded.

"Something to put on the gravestone, I suppose…"

"Sakuya. You are Sakuya." Remilia said, with an air of elegance. The woman tilted her head. "It means 'flowering night'. The night I found you, flowers were blooming… and the night was beautiful."

"That… is a lot of thought into a name of a dead woman… is it not?" Sakuya asked. Remilia shook her head, and drew another few characters into the dirt.

"What day of the month is it?"

"The 16th day of April, I believe." Sakuya said.

"Izayoi." Remilia said.

"Huh?"

"Izayoi. It means 'Sixteenth Night'. Your name is Izayoi Sakuya. It's a good name for you, isn't it?"

"It… it is… thank you… Mistress Scarlet." Sakuya coughed more blood. She was dying. "It was… a pleasure… to meet you…" Remilia shook her head.

"You're not dying on me, Sakuya. We will go back to my home, and live happily forever." Remilia said, tearing up.

"We?" Sakuya asked. She saw Remilia use a spell of some sort. Sakuya saw the marks Dradimir had left of her wrist dissipate, as if they were never there. Her wounds healed a small bit, but not enough to stabilize her. Remilia got close to Sakuya's face, and whispered, almost if what she was saying was an insult to everything.

"Sakuya… do you trust me?" Remilia said, child-like in pitch.

"Of course I do… you may be a vampire… but I owe you my life, and my freedom… for all you've done for me…" Sakuya was starting to lose her vision.

"Sakuya… I can save you, but… you'll have to let me…" Remilia didn't want to say it. She knew what Sakuya would think, it was a horrible idea. Sakuya, however, leaned her head back, exposing her neck.

"If it is what you must do… do it… I would love to serve… at your side…" Remilia bore her fangs, but hesitated, her mind going to war over deciding what to do. But, her instincts kicked in, and she bit down on Sakuya's neck, gently, and quickly. Sakuya's face tensed up, and she let out a pained sound through her teeth, before relaxing into Remilia's arms.

Remilia pulled her head back after a few moments, making sure to only take enough to save Sakuya, and save the girl. Despite her tongue begging her for more of Sakuya's blood. It was too amazimg to ignore, but Remilia resisted, and lifted Sakuya up, and smiled. After a moment, Sakuya spoke up.

"Madam- Mistress Scarlet… may I ask one thing of you?"

"What?"

"Can you… collect my knives… for me? That way, I can keep them, and we can leave this place… that is all."

"Of course. Better in your hands then someone else." And thus, the night Sakuya Izayoi was born, came to an end.

Remilia finished her tea, and turned to Sakuya.

"I have to thank you. Sakuya. You've helped me through so much, you've helped me become someone I would never dream I could be." Sakuya smiled, and looked at Remilia.

"Who have I helped you be?"

"The best version of myself I can ever hope to be." Sakuya and Remilia, Mistress and Servant, both watched as the sun dipped below the mountains, and the stars began to pop up in the say, as it did on that fateful night, years ago.


End file.
